Jasent

Nice save @JHCC

In my limited exp it Sounds like it was not hot all the way through. You need to let the heavy stock soak longer in the fire to make sure your heat is the same all the way through.

I like it. Bet if you turned it on its side it could also be used as a striking anvil. Those holes could be hardys

This video show Df experimenting with the theory

I do know that. Df on utube has a video on it that is quite good. Thankfully that forge dosent exist anymore. It was my first forge built and was pop.

I made tongs from them but the one I used had almost no copper left on it. It just melted off in the forge

Finished up my first steak flipper. And did some tests on an unknown steel. First stainless I've fund that snaps an the break test and mared my hammer face to boot

I am the proud owner of #12. I have since made a new stand and found a new improvised anvil. I'm told by the scrap yard guy cutting up the large stuff that is was from a d9 or d10 dozer. 260lbs

One thing you could try @Work With Nature is clean up your pieces again. Spray with wd40 and rivet it tight. Then heat to welding heat and set your weld. I have not tried this my self but it sounds do-able in my head

Thank you for posting those awesome pic's! Love the punch and slug pic

There is always another way. But cupping dies have many more uses than just rounding hammers. Any way you look at it its a useful tool to have. Not a necessity but still useful.

They are made with the same alloy as the liner plates in rock crushers. Air Harding steel. Claimed rc of 54 all the way threw. Pleasure to work on and made right here in Spokane WA.

In my limited experience Papa Rhino hands down

Hoof pick

I didn't grind mine what so ever. Little clean up with the wire cup was all I needed

I did mine by hammering the edges as mentioned then took a cheap 4# hammer that had been ground to the shape I wanted and used it as a die to hammer in the cup further. Turned out well. Keep it clean of scale as you finish it up as its a pain to clean the scale out of the bottom of the cup. Made from 2.5" axle.

Don't forget to rigiddize your insulation. Cheap and easy

Yes just water And fumed silica and a few drops of food coloring

Deffenitly check out Wayne's site great info and very happy to help you with questions. I bought fumed silica for about $7 (quart). Used maybe half of it on my helium tank forge. And I mixed it heavy. Helium tanks are relatively easy to find and cheap to free. They can not be reused so they have to pay to dispose of them. Check out the forge 101 thread in the gas forges section. Will take a while to read threw but will save you a ton of $$ and head ache!!!

55#'s is a lot of rigiddizer! I believe it only goes bad once mixed. Hopefully some one who knows for certain will chime in

Putting forth the effort to learn something you may not be interested in is the lesion. In life you end up having to learn plenty you don't want to but need to. It's not all you need to learn in school. It's how much effort you put in to it. That you were willing to do it and do it well even tho you hated it. Thats the life lesson

I like it. Been thinking I need one of these. Better to forge one than buy one

Some ideas for the rail

I don't know if my 8#er could even budge it!. Haven't built a stand yet so I just settled it in the gravel and pulled up a bucket.

Got a little fogging in today. First time in weeks. Also first time with my new "anvil". Love it! Much much better than the rail! didnt have time to finish it up but I started a steak flipper